Transmission and Profile of COVID-19 in Children in North Sumatera, Indonesia

In December 2019, a cluster of viral pneumonia cases, later identified as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), was first reported in Wuhan, China, and then continued to spread to other parts of the world. COVID-19 is thought to be more prevalent in adults than children; therefore, information about COVID-19 burden and characteristics in children is lacking.

We gathered data on the profile and transmission in children with COVID-19 from data collected by the North Sumatera Provincial Health Office team. Data were presented as mean±SD and percentage. Statistical analysis was performed using STATA version 15.0.

From April to October 2020, there were 1125 confirmed COVID-19 cases in children in North Sumatera, representing approximately 8.9% of all cases. Death occurred in 0.62% of the patients, and the children who died had underlying diseases. Four major clusters of COVID-19 infection in children were found in three Islamic boarding schools and one refugee shelter.

A high number of children in North Sumatera were affected by COVID-19, and mortality was found to be higher in children with underlying diseases. Major clusters were found in places with prolonged and repeated activities in close contact, such as boarding schools and a refugee shelter.